Page 137 of Forbidden

Laying Splashy down on my pillow, I cross to my window and stare out across campus. My room looks out at the common and the trees surrounding it are now full and green. As the low spring sun reaches golden hour, it casts everything in a soft glow, making everything appear warm and positive—like the whole world is in our hands. Almost. Finals are kicking my ass, but there’s only a couple more weeks left. In fact, the half-written notes on my desk are calling me.

I turn away, but a crack sounds against my window and I squeal, stumbling over my own feet. Before I can figure out what it was, there’s another. My heart in my mouth, I inch forward, wincing when a third stone smacks against the glass.

Peering down, I snort before unlatching the window and shoving it open. “What the hell are you doing?”

Lane looks up at me with a sheepish grin, a fourth stone already in his hand. “Throwing rocks at your window?”

“Why?” I call down. “You realize this isn’t high school, right?”

His smile fades and his shoulders sag. “Maybe I’m doing what I should have done at eighteen.”

I stare down at him, the sun burnishing his hair in shades of gold—the man I’ve loved since I was little more than a kid. “Maybe it’s too late.”

We stare at each other until he eventually tosses the stone to the ground and holds his hands out to the side. “Are you ready to talk to me?”

No. “If I say yes, will you stop trying to break my window?”

He grins, but even from above, I can see it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Of course.”

“I’ll be down in a second.”

I close the window before he can suggest coming in. I don’t want the Bees gossiping about why Coach Masters is coming to my room, and I don’t want him in my room, period.

Grabbing my red chunky-knit cardigan from the back of my door, I jog down the stairs and out into the cooling afternoon air. It’s my favorite time of day, but even the golden glow over campus isn’t enough to lift my mood.

Lane shoves his hands into the pockets of his faded jeans as I approach, giving me a tentative smile. “Walk with me?”

I nod, wrapping the cardigan around my body and tucking my hands under my arms. He doesn’t head to the path that runs around the outskirts of campus, though. Instead, he heads around the back of the Hive, toward the trees.

Franklin West is nestled amongst an evergreen forest, with Mount Hood watching over us in the distance. The woods are fenced off, to keep unwelcome wildlife from campus, but I know for a fact there are ways around it.

Lane doesn’t seem to want to head into the trees, however, and we amble through the few sporadic ones dotted around the high fence.

“Have you spoken to your mom?” he asks eventually.

I raise my eyebrows at his line of questioning. “Erm. No. And I don’t plan to any time soon.”

He frowns, then gives me a sideways look. “She’s only looking out for you, you know. She wants what’s best for you.”

“Are you serious?” I stop walking. “She wants what’s best forher. She wants an Olympian for a daughter. She doesn’t give two shits about what actually makes me happy, and I’m wondering whether she ever has.”

Lane sighs. “See, this is why I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want to come between you and your mom.”

“You took her money and walked out of my life without so much as a goodbye because you didn’t want me to be angry with my mom?” I shake my head with a snort. “What about this time? Did you really think she would be okay with you being back in my life?”

He frowns, his gaze dropping to his sneakers.

“Wait!” I gasp, a memory shoving to the forefront of my mind. “This is why you were arguing with her at the meet in San Francisco, isn’t it? She was warning you off, wasn’t she?”

Lane lifts his head to look at me, his eyes dark. “Yeah, well this time she didn’t have anything to hold over my head. Or at least, I didn’t think she did.”

“This time?” I echo. “What did she have last time?”

Lane’s eyes widen but then shutter as he starts walking. “Do you want to grab a coffee?”

“No.” I jog after him and snatch at the sleeve of his white Henley. “What I want is an answer to my goddamn question.”

Lane slows to a halt and groans, tipping his head back. “I shouldn’t have said anything. Can we forget it, please? You’re already mad at your mom and—”

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